OVERVIEW
France is one of the leading industrial and military powers of NATO. In
1966, during a time of strained relations with the U.S. and Britain, the
French government opted out of the NATO military command structure.
Then-President Nicolas Sarkozy returned France to the NATO command
structure in April 2009. Paris disagreed with Washington's Iraq policies
and refused to send military personnel to take part in the invasion to
rid Iraq of Saddam Hussein.
France was heavily involved...